Mazda5 Owners MPG-Real World Numbers

bwaters · October 2005

My automatic 2004 Mazda3 loaner averaged only 19.5 mpg on the second tank, all in city. I've been a little heavy on the peddle so I could have done better.

mrgary · October 2005

Well we took our MZ5 on vacation just before the recall.
We put 1389 miles on it and averaged 30.5 MPG.
For the entire 4024 miles of owner ship averaging 28.9 MPG but I am not a race type driver.
Can't wait to get it back. The MPV is ok but not so much fun to drive.
Although it is keeping the miles off my car..

pir8matt · October 2005

I imagine the 5-speed would put up numbers like that.

I have to admit, I was surprised the automatic was a 4 speed. When I test drove it, I noticed it was only going up to 4, but we were just driving in a small neighborhood behind the dealership and never really got above 35 MPH. The saleperson said he thought it was a 5-speed, so I bought it thinking that it was.

But my sport automatic had about 212 miles on it when I took it to the dealer for the recall, and it was just about out of gas. That means I was barely getting 20MPG. That sucks.

bobw3 · October 2005

Driving style makes a huge impact on mpg, so depending on when you shift or in an automatic, how hard you push the pedal down after stoplights, can add/subtract 5-10mpg. Try it yourself. Go for a week starting off more gradually, keeping the rpms down and manually calculate the mpg, and then go the next week racing around.

pir8matt · October 2005

Well, I pretty much have a leadfooted driving style, but I was hoping it would get good mileage in spite of my driving style.

Zoom-zoom, and all that, right?

bobw3 · October 2005

Then you should expect to get a lot less mpg than what's posted on the car, since thats calculated by a non zoom zoom driver!

vinnyfast · October 2005

I got 34.5 mpg after calculating the first couple of fillups, now have 1500km....only had it 2 weeks though, sitting in the shop for 2 months or so because of the recall.....now driving a Charger SXT with about half that gas milage....if I'm lucky!!

prulex · October 2005

Picked my 5 up a week or two ago.
I've filled the tank twice...700 miles on the odometer.

Initial full tank from dealer: 23 mpg
1st fillup: 26 mpg

Mix of city/highway...plenty of stop and go through downtown Orlando.

bigbear54 · October 2005

I took a 2005 MAZDA 5 Five Door 2.3 as a rental while my MAZDA 5 :lemon: is parked awaiting repair, so far I have been averaging 30 to 31 MPG on the road, the in town mileage is around 23 to 25 depending on how hard I push it.

drspongklong · October 2005

I think you mean MAZDA3.

mas5 · October 2005

we took delivery of one of the first mazda 5 gt's in mid july, therefore we had possession for a solid 2 months before the recall...it's a great ride..our son call's it his Toy Van..as that is why we purchased it..specifically for ease of ingress/egress since he is handicapped..
back to milage in real world city conditions...4 speed auto...75 % city..averages 9 kilometers per litre..otherwise known as 22mp us gal...one highway trip worked out to 36 mpg us..using cruise and going the speed limit...driving style of course affects milage with any vehicle..what's the rush? you can't beat stoplights!

prulex · October 2005

2nd fillup: 25.5 mpg

frank4cars · October 2005

Just passed 2,000 miles and am averaging about 21 mpg. Got 23 on the way to Vegas and 24 back. Parts of that trip are very steep climbs where the car was running high revs in 3rd. No fires, thank goodness. On a sidenote, the car is very stable (and very quiet) at triple digit speeds, not that I would recommend that kind of thing.

perfectofc · November 2005

First MPG since return: 24.8mpg

smaria · November 2005

I just noticed that the 2006 Mazda5 has been added to the EPA's fuel economy website, so that owners can input their real-world MPG numbers.

You might want to consider posting your numbers there, as well as here...in the case of the Mazda5 I think it'll show that the EPA rating is an underestimate. The address is: www.fueleconomy.gov

Steve

dabatman · November 2005

21.8 in about 50/50 highway/city.... pushed the car a bit, but didn't do anything our of the ordinary (well.. some 100+ mph on the highway just to see how it rides at that speed... (very nice btw w/ the 17" V-rated tires)... it corners very very nice.... hope to take it on a long highway drive soon...

bypasskid · November 2005

just emptied my first tank of gas, not very impressed so far, I am a very carefull driver, but 300 miles for 15.9 gallons (comes to about 19MPG) doesn't seem like a lot.
I understand that the mileage gets better as the engine gets older, true?
thanks

frgjb · November 2005

My 1st fill was 212 miles on 8.3 US gallons - 25.5mpg. Second tank was filled after 358 at just under 14 gallons - 25.5mpg again. I'm driving a 5spd at about 70hwy/30cty. I'm pleased

smaria · November 2005

Did you really put 15.9 gallons into the tank when you filled it up? :surprise:

The tank is rated as having a 15.9 gallon capacity, but the gas light goes on when there are still ~3 gallons left. I've been putting roughly 13 gallons into mine when the gas light goes on and I fill it up. So, for me if I get 300 miles on a "tank", it comes out to something like 300/13 = 23 MPG (not 300/15.9 = 19 MPG).

It's possible that you're only getting 19 MPG, but that'd be the lowest number I've seen reported so far. Your mileage might get better once the engine breaks in.

Also, what most people consider to be "careful" driving isn't necessary the most fuel efficient way to drive...for example, fuel economy is typically better at 55 than it is in the slower 35-45 range.

Steve

flyonthewall · November 2005

Also, did you or the dealer fill the tank before this? If it was your dealer it may not have been truly full. I can easily drive 50+ miles and the gage still reads full. 19 mpg is much lower than I got on my first tank (posted this info earlier).

c3po · November 2005

I got my Mazda 5 back Nov 4, did about 300 km, dealer fill the tank full, before I refilled it when it was half full.
I calculated it to be 24.5 MPG. About 70 % rush hour stop'n go traffic and 30 % highway. I don't think I'll do any better than this until next spring. Its getting colder and snow is on the way here in the Great White North !

drios · November 2005

Which method would be best to calculate MPG?

bobw3 · November 2005

Fill up tank, reset trip odo, and then the next time you fill up the tank just see how many miles you drove and divide by the gallons you put in. Then reset trip odo and do it all over again. Even though you're not supposed to, try to top off the same each time.

And with this forum, let us know if you're talking about Imperial gallons, because if you don't say anything we assume it's US gallons.

b_x20852 · November 2005

drove 294 miles since the previous top-off, and was able to put 12 US gallons into the tank. All in all it gives 24.5 miles per gallon. Pretty good for the 6-seat car with only 615 miles odometer reading...

isda65 · November 2005

How much was city driving compared to highway?

smaria · November 2005

I just calculated 26.3 US MPG on my Mazda5 Sport Automatic. This was during a road trip over the weekend, so nearly all of the miles were on the highway at 75 MPH (cruise control).

This is actually my second fillup after the recall, but I didn't calculate the first tank because I don't know how full the tank was when I got the car back. My best tank before the recall was 27 MPG, so I don't think the new exhaust is hurting my fuel economy.

ffun · November 2005

We got 24 mpg (USgal) in our Manual GT. It was on 100% city driving.

jukka · November 2005

Mazda5 Touring Automatic
320 miles and 12.8 gallons
is 25mpg.
50% city and 50% highway driving.

whipped95 · November 2005

We recently took a short trip and this is what we came up with. 247 miles on 1/2 a tank or 7.95 gal which results in 31.06 mpg hwy @ 65mph/~3000rpm with the climate control on 70F. 90% of the drving was on the highway. It's a 5 speed btw with about ~5500 miles on it now.

frank4cars · November 2005

Did it actually take 7.95 miles to refill it or did the gauge show "half?" The only reason I ask is that the printing on the gauge is only an approximation of actual fuel on board.

My latest tankful on my Touring automatic (post-recall and post first oil change) was 24.7. My highest yet. Great for me with my driving style and for the fact that it was for 70/30 city/highway with a solo driver 90% of the time. My overall avergae at 2800 miles is 22.1.

bigbear54 · November 2005

I just came back from two trips, a little over 1000 miles and I averaged approximately 28.0 MPG Normal driving between 55 and 65 on express ways and am getting around 25 in town traffic, NOT TO BAD

nevergrowup · November 2005

Mazda5 Sport with Automatic. I just finished a 1400 mile trip over the Thanksgiving holiday. 2 adults, 2 teenagers, 2 small dogs and the rear filled with luggage. Mostly Interstate driving averaging 80 MPH. Got an average of a little over 25 MPG.

bobw3 · November 2005

Interesting to see the difference between 55-65mph driver's mpg and an 80mph mpg!

nevergrowup · November 2005

There is an old rule of thumb that states that the average vehicle uses 12 to 15% more fuel traveling at 70 MPH than driving at 55 MPH. So the difference is no surprise.

b_x20852 · December 2005

I haven't driven around a city much but every single day I am sitting in a nice long traffic jam on my way home - the traffic is really stop-and-go almost all the way. So, I would say that it was almost half'n'half.

I had a business trip last week where I drove on the highways 80% of time at 70-80 mph. There was no heavy traffic involved, and I managed to get 25.6 mpg. I guess that if I drove a little bit slower, I could have done better. But no fun then, huh?..

smaria · December 2005

Consumer Reports just released their "real-world" MPG numbers for the Mazda5. Here they are, along with some other vehicles for comparison:

Mazda5 AT:
EPA (city/highway): 21/26
CR (city/highway/overall/150-mile-trip): 16/31/23/28

Toyota Sienna 2WD AT:
EPA (city/highway): 19/26
CR (city/highway/overall/150-mile-trip): 13/27/19/23

Honda Odyssey EX:
EPA (city/highway): 19/25
CR (city/highway/overall/150-mile-trip): 12/28/19/23

Toyota Matrix AWD AT:
EPA (city/highway): 26/31
CR (city/highway/overall/150-mile-trip): 17/33/24/29

The EPA numbers make the Mazda5's MPG (21/26) look similar to the Toyota Sienna's (19/26) and the Honda Odyssey's (19/25). But CR shows that the Mazda5 actually does considerably better than the Sienna and the Odyssey (23 MPG overall for the MAzda5, 19 MPG overall for both the Sienna and Odyssey...that's roughly 17% LESS gas used by the Mazda5 compared to the minivans). Also, the Matrix with it's much higher EPA rating (26/31) does not do much better than the Mazda5 in CR's tests (24 MPG vs. 23 MPG overall). Go Mazda!

I can't help but keep wondering why the EPA numbers for the Mazda5 aren't higher. Maybe they'll jump up next year if the Mazda5 is re-tested for the EPA numbers?

wheelz4 · December 2005

That does look promising, smaria, and is consistent with most owners reporting better than EPA #'s. Cr's city# is quite low, but is consistently low for all the vehicles you listed. CR's hwy # of 31 is great....that's close to 39 mpg imperial gallons. And that's for the automatic...5 speed manual should do even better. I'm hoping the 2006/7 Mazda5 will come with a 5 or 6 speed auto, which should help even more.

flyonthewall · December 2005

That's the Matrix AWD. Do they report mileage for the FWD Matrix or its twin the Pontiac Vibe? Just curious. The Matrix/Vibe is much smaller inside, hence I drive a 5.

flyonthewall · December 2005

25.5 mpg on my 2nd tank. (I'm in the USA)
26.5 mpg on my 3rd tank.
26 mpg average.

-5 spd,
-city driving (including short cross town trips on freeway),
-mostly just hauling my skinny [non-permissible content removed] and a small kid or two.

bobw3 · December 2005

I don't really think it's fair to compare the Mazda5's mpg with a Sienna or Odyssey, both of which are much larger vehicles with a whole lot more carrying capability in terms of passengers, cargo, and towing. I think it's better to compare the Mazda5 with the Matrix, HHR, PT Cruiser, Focus wagon, etc.

gt_fan · December 2005

I'm sure that what smaria was attempting to point out was that the Mazda5 does a much better job of delivering on its EPA estimates than some other vehicles. If you just looked at the EPA numbers you would think the Odyssey would get about the same mpg as the much smaller Mazda5 (my wife's '06 Odyssey is rated at 20/28), but in the real world the Mazda seems to do much better.

Our Odyssey gets about 21 in mixed driving and 25 on highway trips averaging 75 mph. From the posts I'm seeing here the Mazda5 does much better than that - EPA numbers notwithstanding.

I test drove a 5 speed Mazda5 yesterday and was very impressed. With my three kids, it might be the perfect replacement for my '02 Elantra hatchback.

bobw3 · December 2005

Got it...that makes sense. Although I looked at CR for the Freestyle (what I have) and their city mileage is really low. In fact, all the city mpg is really lower than the EPAs. Makes me wonder how CR tests city mpg compared to EPAs city mpg? I consider highway mpg to be setting the car on cruise at 70mph. I consider driving around the suburbs to be "city" driving.

charlotte7 · December 2005

To me, city driving is the 4 miles of stop-and-go city streets that I drive to get to work each way from my house which is also in the city. Reaching the suburbs here all involve getting on a highway.

bobw3 · December 2005

Good point. But the EPA city mpg seems about to match my type of "city" driving (driving in suburbs between stores, work & home), so maybe when CR tests city mpg, they're using your city driving habits (4 miles of stopNgo traffic.

06mazda5 · December 2005

Touring Edition with Automatic 50hwy/50city

29mpg

jerseydevil · December 2005

Where are you at? AC on all the time? Flat lands? I like the Mazda5 quite a bit and would love it if the wife drove something that got 26 or better.

edf4 · December 2005

I just got back from a 3 hour highway drive, which I started with a bit more than half a tank, the first of which was around town driving. After I filled it with 87 regular, I calculated that our 5 Touring manual returned 28.4 mpg! Along with me on the trip was my wife and two under ten children and some overnight gear, and the highway was mixed flat and hills, (VT to CT). Strictly around town, we have averaged about 23 mpg, but that's only based on two full tankfuls.

hmiwb · December 2005

I just got through checking out the Mazda home page and noticed that they have lowered the MPG rating for the automatic equipped Mazda5 to 23 mpg highway. I just bought mine and it had 26 mpg highway on the window. I haven't had it long enough to give you any mileage figures yet but I'm curious why they lowered it. The manual trans version remains the same at 27 highway. Any ideas?

dcdingo · January 2006

Here are my last three tanks (US gals):

14 mpg (

two weeks of 2-mile city trips in the cold)
28 mpg (Vacation trip 80 pct hwy, 20 city)
29 mpg (half tank, pure hwy, 65 mph using cruise control)

As others have observed, the differences in driving environment and behavior are huge.
With only 1,700 miles on the vehicle I am hopeful of posting even better numbers down the road. For an automatic I'm thrilled. Estimated payload for the mostly flat vacation trip from Washington to Williamsburg Va was about 650 pounds, including luggage.

smaria · January 2006

The EPA estimate for the AT is still 26 highway (you can check this in Mazda's technical specs and directly through the EPA website). The 23 MPG on Mazda's website is a typo. I informed Mazda of this typo on December 15th, and they still haven't fixed it. Gee, maybe they're trying to kill consumer interest in the Mazda5 by advertising horrible gas mileage numbers.

Here was MAzda's reply when I told them of the typo:

"Thank you for contacting Mazda North American Operations. I appreciate you bringing this error to our attention.

Consumer feedback is always very important to Mazda. Certainly, we want to offer accurate information on our website, and comments such as yours will help us to achieve that goal.

Rest assured I have documented this information for our corporate record and a copy has been forwarded to our Web Developers to correct the MPG stated under the Performance information on the MAZDA5."

So, 2.5 weeks later, the website still says 23 MPG... :surprise:

Mazda5 Owners MPG-Real World Numbers

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